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It's Mean, It's Green, It's the Mystery Machine
It's Mean, It's Green, It's the Mystery Machine is the fifth episode of the first season of What's New, Scooby-Doo? Premise When Scooby, Shaggy, and the rest of the gang are chased by their van, the Mystery Machine, after it goes "rogue," they must get to the bottom of the mystery before someone gets hurt. Synopsis Shaggy and Scooby are strolling down a street, when their van, the Mystery Machine, suddenly comes to life. At first they think it's Fred giving them a lift, but they quickly realize that nobody is driving. The van turns around and plays a spooky music riff. The two run for their lives. The rest of the gang are having drinks when the other two burst in hysterically. They claim that the Mystery Machine is chasing after them. They go and investigate and find that the van isn't moving and still waiting in the same spot. But then, while Fred is driving, it suddenly takes over and they head straight towards a road barrier and almost crash until Scooby releases an installed parachute. They thankfully stop before colliding with the barrier. They go to see Murph, a mechanic, who seems keen on buying the van for a reasonable price. The gang refuse. Abruptly and without notice, the van pulls out of the garage and drives away with oil leaking onto the road. The gang follow this trail of oil and it leads them to a house. They knock on the door and a woman answers. She turns out to be the mother of the Mystery Kids, Andy and Mandy Dinwiddie. She seems keen on bringing them back to life in the music world. The kids don't seem so enthusiastic. The gang are told by the Kids and their mother about Flash Flannigan, their late pianist who stormed off stage during a performance. They say he went to 'Rock and Roll Heaven'. When leaving, the gang bump into a brother of Andy and Mandy that Susan didn't mention. He says that he's working on a science project. The gang head into the city center, but they are followed by the Mystery Machine, which attacks them, glowing eerie green lights and playing spooky music riffs. Luckily, the gang manage to escape. They find a cab and head towards the university where Randy is working. He explains that he's working with animatronic mechanisms, that allow him to control anything wirelessly. Seeing that Murph seems the only person capable of helping them, they go back to the garage and find a 'private' back room, which happens to be filled with Mystery Kids merchandise and videos. When putting one of the films on, it talks about how Flash Flannigan disappeared and how a flower appears on his gravestone. The gang decide to investigate the cemetery. When there, they see Andy and Mandy kneeling next to the grave of their friend. Fred suspects something. The Mystery Machine suddenly arrives and starts chasing the gang, until it finally nets Shaggy with the doors. On their scooters, the gang chase the van down the wrong side of the motorway. The Mystery Machine stops and a policeman gives Shaggy and Fred a warning for the trouble caused. When the Mystery Machine is kept in custody with the police, the gang head to see the mystery kids prepare for their show. Murph happens to be there. Velma decides to hold a seance and Daphne improvises by pretending to call to Flash in the spirit world. The Mystery Machine coincidentally arrives, to Daphne's surprise. Velma has a plan ready though and drops a lead-lined cover over the van, meaning that wireless control doesn't work. When they pull back the table cloth, the culprit turns out to be Susan Dinwiddie who had been controlling the machine using a wireless control, which she learned while helping Randy with his homework. It turns out that she only wanted the Mystery Kids to return to fame. Andy and Mandy disagree, and then drop their instruments and join Randy much to Susan's shock and horror. Murph offers another price for the Mystery Machine. Once again, the gang refuses. The gang heads to a drive-in movie theater to celebrate getting their Mystery Machine back. Just then, the gang thinks the van is haunted again and run off, when it's actually driven by Scooby. Characters Main characters: * Mystery Inc. ** Scooby-Doo ** Shaggy Rogers ** Fred Jones ** Velma Dinkley ** Daphne Blake Supporting characters: * Murph * Mystery Kids ** Andy Dinwiddie ** Mandy Dinwiddie * Randy Dinwiddie Villains: * The Mystery Machine * Susan Dinwiddie Other characters: * Smoothie shop partons * Piano student * Taxi driver * Rewind the Music narrator * Flash Flannigan * Police officer * Auto impound guard Locations * Movie theater * Smoothie Shop * Murph's Rod Shop ** Basement * Dinwiddie home ** Studio * Defries Technical Academy * Cemetery ** Flash Flannigan's grave * Highway * City Park * Auto impound * Drive-in theater Objects * Smoothies * Velma's laptop * Mystery Machine parachute * Piano * Scooby Snax box * Scooby Snax * Andy and Mandy Candy * Television set * Tandem bicycle * Kick scooter * Skateboard * Roller skates Vehicles * The Mystery Machine * Taxicab * Police car Suspects Culprits Cast Songs Full credits The following credits are how they are displayed on-screen (or as close as possible). Opening credits * Producer: Chuck Sheetz * Line Producer: Margaret M. Dean * Associate Producer: Kathryn Page * Supervising Director: Scott Jeralds * Casey Kasem as Shaggy, Frank Welker as Fred & Scooby-Doo * Written By: Mark E. Turosz * Directed By: Joe Sichta Closing credits * Producer: George Doty IV * Series Story Editors: George Doty IV, Jim Krieg, Ed Scharlach * Series Directors: Russell Calabrese, Tim Maltby, Tom Mazzocco, Swinton Scott, Joe Sichta * Music By: Gigi Meroni & Rich Dickerson * "What's New, Scooby-Doo?" Theme ** Written By: Rich Dickerson & Gigi Meroni ** Performed By: Simple Plan ** Courtesy Of: Lava Records ** www.lavarecords.com * "2 Cute 2 4-Get" ** Written By: Rich Dickerson, Gigi Meroni, & Jim Krieg ** Performed By: Maria Carmen Diaz & Joseph Corella of Tropic Zone * "I'd Do Anything" ** Written By: Pierre Bouvier, Charles-Andre Comeau, David Desrosiers, Arnold David Lanni, Sebastien Lefebvre, Jean-Francois Stinco ** Performed By: Simple Plan ** Courtesy Of: Lava Records ** By Arrangement With: Warner Special Products * Casting & Voice Direction: Collette Sunderman * Starring the Voices Of: Mindy Cohn as Velma, Grey DeLisle as Daphne, Roger Rose as Narrator & Policeman, Kath Soucie as Susan Dinwiddie, Beng Spies as Murph & Randy Dinwiddie, Larc Spies as Andy, Lauren Tom as Mandy * Based Upon Characters Created By: Hanna-Barbera Productions * Main Title Design: Sandra Frame, James Fujii, Scott Jeralds, Chris Rutkowski, Chuck Sheetz * Main Title Animation: Lotto Animation * Creative Consultant: Iwao Takamoto * Storyboard: Jerry Eisenberg, Sebastian Montes, John Nevarrez * Animation Timing Directors: Jerilyn Mettlin, Maureen Mlynarczyk, Brian Sheesley, Pat Shinagawa * Character Design: Scott Awley, Scott Jeralds * BG Paint: Shahen Jordan, Tristin Roesch-Cole * Prop Design: Mark Bachand, Scott Hill * BG Design: Edgar Carlos, Robert Harand, Bill Proctor * Assistant Production Managers: Vera Morales, AJ Vargas * Production Coordinators: Jessica Dalton, Judge Plummer * Ink and Paint Supervisor: Geno DuBois * Color Key: Lisa Redondo * Mark-Up/Painters: Kim Bowen, Eric Nordberg, Bill Ohanesian * Animation Checking: Jan Browning, Susan Burke, Eleanor Dahlen, Chuck Gefre, Karl Jacobs, Chuck Martin, Kathleen Svetlik * Director of Post Production: Tim Iverson * Post Production Supervisor: Bonnie Buckner * Post Production Coordinator: Michael Miscio * Film Editor: Susan Edmunson * Director of Technical Operations: Bradford H. Keatts * Assistant Production Manager of Technical Operations: John Voralik * Supervising Online Editor: Bradford H. Keatts * Online Editor: Tony Tedford * Supervising Dialogue/ADR Editor: Mark A. Keatts * Supervising Recording Engineer: Edwin O. Collins * Recording Machine Operator: Jeff O. Collins * Recording Facility: Warner Bros. Animation * Dialogue/ADR Editors: Kelly Ann Foley, Kerry Iverson, Mark Keefer * Sound Reading: Carol Iverson, Fred Salinas, Denise Whitfield * Post Production Sound Services: Glenwood Editorial, Inc. * Re-Recording Studio: Glenwood Place Studios * Sound Effects Supervisor: Glen Oyabe * Re-Recording Mixers: Brad Brock, Timothy Garrity * Engineer: Kennie Takahashi * Animation Services: Wang Film Production Co., LTD, Cuckoos Nest Studios * Animation Director: Water Tree * Layout & BG Supervisor: Vincent Liu * Digital Production Supervisor: Anny Wang * Production Administrators: Tammy Davis, Michael Diaz, Marci Gray, Laura Marquez, Jacqueline Olsommer, Mary Parkinson, Amy E. Wagner * Casting Administrator: Liz Carroll * Production Accounting: Athena Christianakis, Luisa Guzman, Rose Mesa, Maria Womack * Business and Legal Affairs: Debi Dean, Michael Lalla, Bonnie Negrete, Peter Steckelman * Production Supervision: Toshi Hiruma, Howard Schwartz * Development and Creative Supervision: Christopher Keenan, Linda Steiner * Production Management: Andy Lewis * Executive Producers: Joseph Barbera, Sander Schwartz * Special Thanks To: Joe Ruby & Ken Spears * Warner Bros. Animation * This motion picture is protected under the laws of the United States of America and other countries. Any unauthorized, duplication, copying, distribution, exhibition or use may result in civil and/or criminal prosecution. * Dolby Surround * ©2002 Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. * All Rights Reserved * Country of first publication United States of America * Warner Bros. is the author of this film/motion picture for the purposes of Article (15)2 of the Berne Convention and all national laws given effect thereto. * Warner Bros. Animation * www.warnerbros.com Notes/trivia * This episode alone is a perfect example of the series' premise of Scooby-Doo being in the 21st century with modern updates of certain elements seen in the original series: ** Like in , the episode begins with Scooby and Shaggy walking home from the movies, with the latter complaining how late it is because the former had to see a dog movie twice in a row. Last time it was about a forest ranger-type dog and this one is about a space dog. Another difference is they're actually seen leaving the theater downtown as opposed to walking in the woods. ** The gang seem to spend their evenings at a smoothie shop, instead of a malt shop. ** Velma prominently carries around a laptop for research. ** The gang solving a mystery in an ambiguous local setting. * This is the first (and only) episode in the series' history to give a canon backstory to the Mystery Machine's history. * This episode is animated by Wang Film Production and Cuckoos Nest Studios giving it almost an entirely different look compared to the other episodes, and looking somewhat similar to A Pup Named Scooby-Doo. Miscellaneous * Disguises: Daphne disguised as a swami. * Scooby Snack bribe: 1. * "Zoinks" count: 1. * "Jeepers" count: 1. * Scooby-Dooby doors: Around the tombstones during the chase song. Cultural references * The Dinwiddies seem to be a parody of the fictional singing family in the ABC sitcom, The Partridge Family. Susan, their mother, sounds somewhat like the animated Mrs. Partridge from a [[wikipedia:Partridge Family 2200 A.D.|70's Partridge Family cartoon]], who was voiced by Joan Gerber, and not the live-action portrayer, Shirley Jones. * A car that drives by itself and attacks may be a reference to Stephen King's book and movie (directed by John Carpenter), Christine; another reference could be the 1977 suspense movie The Car, starring James Brolin; the 2011 sci-fi horror movie Super Hybrid, starring Oded Fehr, also uses a similar concept to this episode. * Daphne makes a reference to The Wizard of Oz. Adaptations * In 2004, Scholastic published Mean, Green, Mystery Machine. Animation mistakes and/or technical glitches * Just before the Mystery Machine cornered the gang in the ally, the top and bottom colors changed over for a second. * When Randy told the gang he'd find a good mechanic if his van acted funny, his shirt and sweater vest were yellow and light blue instead of white and green. * Just after Shaggy is caught, the doors are fully blue, but when the Mystery Machine drives off, the bottom of the doors are green. * After the gang are chased by the Mystery Machine, it drives off with Shaggy, but Shaggy is nowhere to be seen inside it when, in the next shot, it comes towards the viewer. * As Shaggy and Scooby were being chased on the stage the spare tire that had fallen off when The Mystery Machine crashed into an alleyway wall returns for a few seconds. * When the Mystery Machine arrives at Daphne's seance, its roof is green instead of blue. * At the end of the episode when Scooby is in the Mystery Machine, his mouth is entirely pink. Inconsistencies/continuity errors and/or goofs/oddities * The entire episode is very localized so it must be set in Coolsville, but later in A Scooby-Doo Valentine it was made into a big deal about them coming back home for a break. It was also implied that it had been a quite a long while since they had been in Coolsville due to the reaction of the officer in charge who didn't want the "famous Scooby Gang" taking over a case, a likely reference to the many mysteries they solved in A Pup Named Scooby-Doo (and any place else that was local) before they traveled around the world. ** Of course, it's also incredibly convenient that the Dinwiddies' live in the same area. * The way the episode opens up, Scooby and Shaggy awkwardly look like they're walking past the movie theater, instead of actually walking out of it. * The Mystery Machine didn't need to drive right next to Shaggy for him to realize Fred wasn't driving since it was already pretty close beforehand. * It's pretty presumptuous of Shaggy to think Fred would give them a lift when he was in the smoothie shop and may or may not have known where the guys were. Although, Shaggy and Scooby assumed that the rest of the gang would be in the smoothie shop. * Velma seems to carry her laptop around just so it can eventually get to the scene of it being crushed by the Mystery Machine. Only, when it is crushed, papers fly out as if it's a briefcase exploding. * Flash Flannigan's grave seems to have been made simply because everybody thinks that because he vanished, he must be dead; the circumstances of his death, if it actually happened, weren't revealed. A vigil would've been more appropriate, but that wouldn't have helped the rest of the episode. * Andy and Mandy may have made things better with Randy, but his mother didn't, especially after the only quality time they spent together was when she was only using him to gain the knowledge she needed to cause mayhem and get publicity for his siblings (and also indirectly making him a possible suspect in the process). In other languages Home media * What's New, Scooby-Doo?: Volume 2 - Safari, So Goodi! VHS released by Warner Home Video on March 9, 2004. * What's New, Scooby-Doo?: Volume 2 - Safari, So Goodi! DVD released by Warner Home Video on March 9, 2004. * What's New, Scooby-Doo?: Volume 2 - Safari, So Goodi! DVD released by Warner Home Video on June 28, 2004. * What's New, Scooby-Doo?: Complete 1st Season DVD set released released by Warner Home Video on February 20, 2007. * Scooby-Doo! Mystery in Motion DVD released on June 11, 2012. Quotes External links * Buy in HD from iTunes (US) * Buy in HD from iTunes (UK) }} Category:What's New, Scooby-Doo? season 1 episodes